The ride-hailing company Uber has achieved extremely rapid global expansion by means of outmanoeuvring governments, regulators and competitors. The rise of the company has been based on a deliberate strategy of acting as a market disruptive innovator through a user friendly technology and making use of the 'sharing economy'. These attributes are not unique, but are distinctively augmented by a relentless expansionary ambition and an ability to maintain the capacity to innovate. Uber has generated great political controversy, but the challenge for governments and regulators is to embrace the benefits of the disruptive innovator, while adopting an approach that takes into account the full range of impacts. For Uber, the challenge is to maintain its expansionary style as a disruptive innovator, while also redefining on its terms the political and public debate. The case study of London provides important insights into the dynamics of these processes.


Since Basra was a trading port for Iraq in the Arab Gulf, foreign influences that affected the
progress in the field of trade and investment. Here in this port, encounters occurred between
Arabs, Persians and Indians as well as between the religions of Christianity, Judaism, Majus
and Islam. The closeness between Basra and the Gandisabur school in Persia that studied the
Persian, Greek, and Indian culture has generated a mix of culture as a whole. During the
period of Umar ibn Abdul Aziz, translation works on medical books were carried out by
Masir Haubah. The same thing was also undertaken by Abdullah al-Muqaffa' who was fluent
in Arabic and Persian. He translated books on the Persian literature and history into Arabic.
From the son of Abdullah al-Muqaffa, Muhammad, the Arabic translation of Aristotle's
science of logic Kalilah wa Dimnah was produced. There was also a Jewish translator
named Hunain Ibn Ishaq, who translated books and got rewards in the form of gold for each
weight of books he translated. In Basra, there was a school of Mu'tazilah that learnt the Greek
sciences. This strongly affected the school of sciences he learnt such as the science of kalam
and nahwu in terms of taqsim, ta'lil, ta'wil dan qiyas.


This highlight article is devoted to catalytic applications of mesoporous materials containing transition metal oxides (Ti, Nb and Ta). In general, these mesoporous molecular sieves (MMS) can be readily modified by doping with other elements, reduction or acid treatment to extend their applications in catalysis. We highlight some of the recent findings from our group focusing on the modification of existing mesoporous transition metal oxides, characterization of these new mesoporous structures and their respective surface properties, and the exploration of their potential catalytic applications in areas such as dinitrogen activation, benzylation, alkylation, and isomerization. Confinement effects and porosity are also discussed, which are known to strongly affect diffusion and catalytic properties, resulting in the existence of an optimal catalytic efficiency depending on pore size and internal surface area.


Land has a very important role for the community as a place of development and also the people's livelihood, especially in the state of Indonesia as the State Agriculture, so that the State Constitution RI Tahun1945 Article 33 paragraph (3) states that: "Earth, water, space, and wealth nature contained in it are controlled by the State and used for the greatest prosperity of the people ". As a follow up of Article 33 paragraph (3) that on September 24, 1960, enacted Law No. 5 of 1960 on Basic Regulation of Agrarian called by its official acronym BAL. Article 19 of Law No. 5 of 1960 stipulates that "to ensure legal certainty by the Government held land registration throughout the territory of the Republic of Indonesia in accordance with the provisions stipulated by Government Regulation", which was followed up with a given title deed as proof and evidence right, because it can ensure legal certainty for everyone. Then BAL is described by the issuance of PP 10 of 1961 on registration of land and replaced by Regulation No. 24 of 1997 on Land Registration Jo Minister of State for Agrarian Affairs / Head of National Land Agency No. 3 of 1997 on the Implementation of Government Regulation No. 24 of 1997 on Land Registration and based on Indonesian Presidential Regulation No. 17 of 2015 of the Ministry of Agricultural and Spatial jo Indonesian Presidential Regulation No. 20 Year 2015 concerning the National Land Agency, the Ministry of Agricultural and Spatial Planning / National Land Agency (KATR / BPN) is assigned to carry out government affairs in the area of land that is responsible to the Coordinating Ministry of Economic Affairs. Mentioned legal certainty in land registration is given a letter of proof of land rights called the title deed to the parties concerned as proof and evidentiary tool for rights to lands that held them. Implementation of registration of land in modern society is the duty of the State carried out by the government for the people's interest in ensuring legal certainty in the field of land. Right to control the state for land, water and air space in Indonesia is the devolution of the elements of the public of the rights of the nation, while the right of the people on the earth, water and air space of Indonesia, is a right of the people of Indonesia, as Haqul of God given to Haqul Adam (Indonesianpeople). That until the moment of registration of land in Indonesia has reached ± 54 (fifty-four) million plot of ± 85 (eighty-five) million parcels of land (data from the Center for Data and Information Land November 11, 2015) because since 1981 carried out land registration the first time en masse on the issuance of certificates of land rights as a letter of proof of the rights which a proofing tool that is powerful, through the Strategic Program as Prona, Agricultural land, fisherman, Micro, Small, Low-Income Communities, redistribution of land, Consolidation Land, Transmigration and others which are land development activities for Indonesian citizens or legal entities / social and religious organizations, preferred to the economically weak to medium. 2017 has been issued Regulation of the Minister of Agriculture of Dan Spatial / Head of National Land Agency Number 1 Year 2017 on the Acceleration of the Implementation of the Land Registration Systematic Full of Changes to the Regulation of the Minister of Agriculture and Spatial Planning / Head of National Land Agency No. 35 Year 2016 on the Acceleration implementation of the land Registry Systematic Complete, which aims to provide legal certainty and legal protection of land rights of the people in a fair and equitable, and promote economic growth in general and the people's economy in particular, as well as reduce the incidence of land disputes in the future so it needs to be accelerated registration complete a systematic land in all regions of the Republic of Indonesia, especially in Humbang Hasundutan.


Utilizing a contractualist framework for understanding the basis and limits for the use of force by police, this article offers five limiting principles—respect for status as moral agents, proportionality, minimum force necessary, ends likely to be accomplished, and appropriate motivation—and then discusses uses of force that violate or risk violating those principles. These include, but are not limited to, unseemly invasions, strip searches, perp walks, handcuffing practices, post-chase apprehensions, contempt-of-cop arrests, overuse of intermediate force measures, coerced confessions, profiling, stop and frisk practices, and the administration of street justice.


The
central
premise
of
this
thesis
is
that
translation
has
acquired
a
new
meaning
in
so-‐
called
postcolonial
times
and
that
this
transformation
calls
forth
a
renewal
of
the
philosophical
conceptualisation
of
translation.
I
begin
by
distinguising
between
two
different
philosophical
genealogies
of
translation
in
modern
European
philosophy.
The
first
is
a
Romantic
and
hermeneutic
lineage,
in
which
translation
is
closely
bound
to
the
movement
of
culture
(Bildung),
and
conceived
of
as
an
'experience
of
the
foreign'.
The
second
is
a
relational
genealogy
of
translation,
in
which
translation
is
a
transformation
without
teleology,
yet
systematically-‐oriented.
The
thesis
reconstructs
this
alternative
concept
through
a
parallel
reading
of
Walter
Benjamin's
and
Michel
Serres'
works
on
translation,
contending
that
Leibniz's
relational
metaphysics
proved
a
crucial
resource
for
both
of
them.
Albeit
reflecting
on
different
objects
(the
sciences
and
the
work
of
art),
these
two
authors
converge
in
thinking
translation
as
a
relation
and
a
method,
associating
translation
with
their
critique
of
epistemology.
By
drawing
on
a
generalised
metaphysics
of
language,
they
both
reflect
on
translation
as
a
transformation
in
the
objective
domain,
hence
as
a
form
of
historicity.
The
thesis
is
composed
of
three
autonomous
yet
convergent
parts.
The
first
part
operates
as
a
backdrop
to
the
whole
by
expounding
the
need
for
locating
the
philosophy
of
translation
outside
of
the
ethics
of
alterity.
It
contends
that
the
link
made
between
linguistic
difference
and
difference
'as
such'
is
often
insufficiently
mediated.
The
second
part
examines
Serres'
early
works,
explicating
his
philosophy
of
translation
in
close
connexion
with
the
evolution
of
his
structuralism,
from
his
doctoral
work
on
Leibniz
(1968)
to
the
last
of
the
Hermes
series:
Le
passage
du
Nord-‐Ouest
(1980).
The
third
part
investigates
Benjamin's
philosophy
of
translation
in
light
of
his
metaphysics
of
language,
following
his
concepts
of
the
'afterlife'
as
a
thread
through
his
early
and
later
works.
Finally,
the
conclusion
propounds
the
intrinsic
connexion
that
holds
between
the
translation
problem,
Leibnizianism
and
'decentered
epistemologies'.


: The ability to maintain or create aesthetics in the maxillary anterior area without affecting the adjoining healthy teeth has been the primary reason for the popularity of implant utilization in the anterior single tooth restoration. This article presents a sequence of several traumatic incidences involving the maxillary incisors. The options considered for restoration are discussed and the reasons for implant selection explained. The surgical phase and tissue augmentation procedures are presented, and the need for a multidisciplinary approach is emphasized. The learning objective of this article is to share the observations and experience gained from the restoration of a rather unusual case of traumatic sequences.


Purpose: The article analyzes contemporary conditions for the emergence of complex systemic threats resulting from the development of the risk industry. The authors are looking for an answer to the question whether the obligatory incorporation of internal whistleblowing systems in organizations producing dangerous products in dangerous processes with the use of dangerous devices would minimize the systemic risks resulting from organized irresponsibility. Design/Methodology/Approach: The research carried out using the problem analysis method was aimed at the initial structuring of the research field and theoretical and conceptual preparation of tools for detailed exploration. Findings: The conducted analysis revealed surprising constellations of interests in keeping security as low as possible. The mutual interactions between the risk industry, security administration and professional science create conditions that are particularly favorable to disasters and unlimited chains of damage. To disrupt these interactions, all organizations with a security impact should be required to install credible internal whistleblowers systems. Practical Implications: The problems presented in the article will contribute to the increased awareness of the hidden dimensions of threats and the need to change the current security paradigm based on the elementarization of threats, linear-deterministic understanding of causality, Cartesian methodical skepticism, computability as the dominant objectivisation strategy, passive responsibility, crisis response and method learning trial and error. Originality: The article problematizes the hitherto unknown contexts of using internal whistleblowing systems.


This paper explores some fundamental methodological issues, in particular about the standards by which research should be judged, that are raised by anti-racist criticism of recent work by Peter Foster on teacher racism in British schools. The nature of the debate surrounding this work is examined, and it is suggested that it derives from fundamental disagreements about the character and purpose of sociological research. Arising from this, the implications of social scientists abandoning a foundationalist epistemology are considered. It is argued that this does not necessarily, and should not, lead us to adopt extreme epistemological alternatives, such as relativism, standpoint theory, or instrumentalism. Instead, a less radical non-foundationalism is defended, and its implications for the dispute between Foster and his critics explored.


Background: Youth with poorly controlled type 1 diabetes (T1D) are at increased risk for morbidity yet very few interventions have targeted this vulnerable population. The purpose of this study was to test the feasibility, acceptability and preliminary efficacy of an intensive, team-based intervention program for youth with HbA1c ≥ 9.5%. Methods: Forty patients (age 14.1±2.3 years, 53% male) with T1D (duration 6.5±4.3 years) were enrolled in an intensive, 4-month team-based intervention that included a visit with their primary endocrinologist and a pediatric psychologist at baseline as well as up to 6 encounters (in-person visits and calls) with a Certified Diabetes Educator (CDE). The CDE encounters were designed to establish goals, support behavior changes, review glucose logs, and make interim dose adjustments as needed. Feasibility was measured by the number of patients approached and the number of patients who ultimately agreed to participate, acceptability was measured by attendance and attrition rates, and preliminary efficacy was assessed by changes in HbA1c and diabetes-related Quality of Life (QoL). Data were collected at baseline and 4 months. Results: Of the 42 patients who were approached, 40 agreed to participate, and 35 (87.5%) completed the 4-month program. CDE engagement with patients included an average of 3 phone calls and 3 in-person visits. Compared to baseline, HbA1c reduced from 12.0%±1.6 at baseline to 11.0%±1.9 at the 4 month visit (p Conclusion: Intensive team-based interventions in pediatric patients with poorly controlled T1D can improve glycemic control and QoL. Disclosure M. Chambers: None. G.Q. Shaibi: None. C.R. Kapadia: None. F. Hoekstra: None. S.S. Puffenberger: None. L. Touger: None. I.K. Radcliffe: None. L. Holzmeister: None. K.A. Olsen: None. Funding Thomas J. Beatson, Jr. Foundation


Sexual dysfunction, that is the repeated inability to achieve normal sexual intercourse, which include various forms like premature ejaculation, retrograded, retarded or inhibited ejaculation, erectile dysfunction, arousal difficulties (reduced libido), compulsive sexual behaviour, orgasmic disorder and failure of detumesence, are on the increase world wide because of aging population and other increasing etiological factors. Several management options employed are associated with some serious side effects not readily available and are expensive. The search for natural supplement from medicinal plants is being intensified probably, because of its reduced side effect, its ready availability and reduced cost. Therefore, the increasing search for medicinal plants with aphrodisiac potentials has necessitated the need to review methods available for screening medicinal plants with aphrodisiac potentials in males.


Counseling ethics is a complex discipline; it is more than the acquisition of ethical principles, codes of ethics, and standards of practice. To disentangle the intricacies of ethics education, we use the acculturation model to conceptualize students' learning of counseling ethics, particularly international students who experience acculturation in the general sense and the acculturation of ethics in the counseling profession specifically. A case study is presented to illustrate the four acculturation strategies that students may adopt in ethical decision-making. Implications for counselor education, practice, and research are provided.


............................................................................................................................ vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ....................................................................................................... vii LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................................................x LIST OF PLATES .................................................................................................................. xi LIST OF APPENDICES ........................................................................................................ xii ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS .............................................................................. xiii CHAPTER ONE .......................................................................................................................


Since the 1940s, the Juneau Icefield Research Program (JIRP) has been measuring surface mass balance on the Juneau Icefield. This is the longest ongoing program of its kind in North America. The program nominally occurs between late June and late August, traversing between Juneau, Alaska and Atlin, British Columbia. JIRP has examined the surface mass balance of the Juneau Icefield since 1946, with principal efforts focused on Lemon Creek Glacier and Taku Glacier. Glaciological, geodetic, and meteorological data have been collected by JIRP to characterize the interaction between the climate and glaciers of the Juneau Icefield. Direct field measurements of point glaciological data are combined with weather and geodetic data to estimate the seasonal and annual mass balance at each glacier in both a conventional and reference surface format (Cogley and others, 2011). The basic analysis framework (O'Neel, 2019, McNeil and others, 2019) is the same at each glacier to enable cross-comparison between output time series. For Taku and Lemon Creek glaciers, temperature lapse rates are optimized using on-icefield weather data. This changes the degree day factor in the melt model, giving small post-geodetic calibration differences on the order of 2-3 cm. Details are described in McNeil (2019). Vocabulary used follows Cogley and others (2011) Glossary of Glacier Mass Balance. This portion of the data release includes geodetic data used in mass balance analyses. The USGS uses geodetic data to quantify glacier area, glacier hypsometry, and the change in glacier volume and mass (e.g., Cogley and others 2011; Zemp and others 2013; van Beusekom and others, 2010; O'Neel and others 2014). Here we describe these basin-scale data, how they are produced, and the format in which they are preserved and disseminated. Gridded products comprise the first class of data and include orthorectified images and Digital Elevation Models (DEMs). Prior to the early 2000s, these grids were derived from aerial stereo photography or historic topographic maps. More recently, high-resolution space-borne imagery facilitated DEM and ortho-image production using approaches described herein. The second class of data are vector geospatial files of glacier margins. These are interpreted products, produced via manual digitization of the boundary between rock and ice identified from ortho-rectified images, or the boundary between neighboring glaciers identified from ice divide velocity maps. Additional data for Lemon Creek Glacier, part of the Juneau Icefield, is available in a separate data release of USGS Benchmark Glacier geodetic data at https://doi.org/10.5066/P9R8BP3K. The data is documented but is not included here in order to avoid duplication.


DiGuglielmo 1 recognized that erythroid cell maturation was distinctly abnormal in certain neoplastic conditions of the bone marrow. In the most usual variety, referred to as erythroleukemia, an abnormal myeloblastic proliferation is combined with disordered megaloblastic erythroid maturation often leading terminally to typical acute myeloblastic leukemia. In other forms, the disorder may assume either a more chronic and nonprogressive course or a more rapid and fulminant course involving chiefly the red blood cell precursors. Normal erythroid tissue is regulated by the hormone erythropoietin, which is produced in response to the need for an increased number of circulating red cells. The report to follow describes a patient with erythroleukemia who was investigated with the objective of determining whether "neoplastic" erythroid tissue behaves in an autonomous and unregulated fashion. By several parameters of measurement, erythropoiesis in this patient was found to respond to alterations in concentration of plasma erythropoietin. Patient Summary


Cancer Research
More than 50% of people born in the U.K. since 1960 will develop cancer in their lifetimes, finds a new study. Combining actual cancer rates from 1951 to 2012 with projected rates for 2013 through 2060, Ahmad et al. estimated lifetime risks for men and women born in 1930 with those for men and women born from 1931 to 1960. For men, the risk increased from 38.5% for those born in 1930 to 53.5% for those born in 1960; for women, risk increased from 36.7% to 47.5%. Increasing life expectancy was the primary reason for the risk increase.

Br. J. Cancer , 10.1038/bjc.2014.606(2014).


This study addresses controversies in the literature of risk factors of abuse perpetrated by men against female intimate partners. Drawing upon the three theoretical perspectives dominant in the literature (family violence, mainstream feminist, and life-course perspectives), I approach the analysis from two directions. First, each perspective suggests risk factors in a particular category of influence; the family violence perspective suggests a focus on family influences, mainstream feminism suggests socio-cultural influences, and life-course theorists suggest a focus on individual/personal factors. Second, the family violence perspective and the life-course also suggested investigating influences organized by age group. I use a sample of 506 boys from the Pittsburgh Youth Study, a longitudinal study consisting of male individuals from public schools of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. More specifically, I focus on the 329 participants in the sample who reported being involved in a romantic relationship by age 23-25, age at which intimate partner abuse was investigated. The findings of the descriptive analysis show that intimate partner abuse is strongly correlated to the variables experience of corporal punishment in the family of origin, attitudes toward women, and delinquency (especially age 19-22). The multivariate analysis confirms that minority males, those who entered the relationship at younger age, those who experienced frequent corporal punishment in the family of origin (age 13-15), and those who had been antisocial during pre-adulthood (age 19-22) were more likely to abuse an intimate female partner during adulthood (age 23-25). The findings on race, age at entering the relationship, and delinquency add new evidence to existing controversies in the empirical literature. In the case of corporal punishment, the results address a gap in the literature.


EJ. Interactions between limb and environmental mechanics influence stretch reflex sensitivity in the human arm. Stretch reflexes contribute to arm impedance and longer-latency stretch reflexes exhibit increased sensitivity during interactions with compliant or unstable environments. This increased sensitivity is consistent with a regulation of arm impedance to compensate for decreased stability of the environment, but the specificity of this modulation has yet to be investigated. Many tasks, such as tool use, compromise arm stability along specific directions, and stretch reflexes tuned to those directions could present an efficient mechanism for regulating arm impedance in a task-appropriate manner. To be effective, such tuning should adapt not only to the mechanical properties of the environment but to those properties in relation to the arm, which also has directionally specific mechanical properties. The purpose of this study was to investigate the specificity of stretch reflex modulation during interactions with mechanical environments that challenge arm stability. The tested environments were unstable, having the characteristics of a negative stiffness spring. These were either aligned or orthogonal to the direction of maximal endpoint stiffness for each subject. Our results demonstrate preferential increases in reflexes, elicited within 50 –100 ms of perturbation onset, to perturbations applied specifically along the direction of the destabilizing environments. This increase occurred only when the magnitude of the environmental instability exceeded endpoint stiffness along the same direction. These results are consistent with task-specific reflex modulation tuned to the mechanical properties of the environment relative to those of the human arm. They demonstrate a highly adaptable, involuntary mechanism that may be used to modulate limb impedance along specific directions. The human arm is routinely used to perform postural tasks, such as pushing against a tool, that compromise limb stability (Rancourt and Hogan 2001). To complete these tasks, the neuromotor system must adapt the mechanical properties of the arm so that the coupled mechanics of the arm and the environment to which it is attached remain stable. When posture is constrained, this adaptation must occur through changes in muscle activity, mediated by some combination of feedforward and feedback pathways. Feedforward motor commands can be refined through learning (Shadmehr and Mussa-Ivaldi 1994), and it has been suggested that changes in feedforward planning contribute to the task-appropriate regulation of arm mechanics during movements through unstable environments (Burdet et al. 2001; Franklin et al. 2003). Specifically, it has been demonstrated that changes in feedforward activation can preferentially …


ABSTRACT Introduction Soy isoflavones have been shown to be an alternative to hormone therapy at menopause, without causing side-effects such as breast cancer. However, the effects of early and late treatment with isoflavones on the mammary gland remain controversial. Objective To investigate the effects of early and late treatment with soy isoflavones on the mammary gland of ovariectomized rats. Methods Thirty 3-month-old rats were ovariectomized and divided equally into groups: Control, treated with vehicle solution; or with 150 mg/kg/body weight of isoflavones by gavage; or subcutaneously treated with 10 μg/kg/body weight with 17β-estradiol. Treatments started 3 days (early treatment) or 30 days (late treatment) after ovariectomy and lasted for 30 consecutive days. Thereafter, the animals were euthanized and the mammary glands were removed and processed for paraffin embedding. Sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin for histomorphometry or subjected to immunohistochemical detection of Ki-67 and VEGF-A. Results The ductal, lobular and total epithelial fractions were similar between controls and the early/late isoflavone groups, but they were significantly higher in the groups treated with estradiol. In both epithelial and stromal regions, the immunoreactivity of VEGF-A and the percentage of Ki-67-positive cells were significantly higher in the groups treated with estradiol, while they were similar in the early/late isoflavone groups and control groups. Conclusion Our results indicate that early and late treatment with soy isoflavones at the dose of 150 mg/kg/body weight does not show proliferative and angiogenic effects on the mammary gland of ovariectomized rats.


Summary results of a worldwide study on engineering and technology management are presented. The year-long study was conducted under the sponsorship of IEEE Engineering Management Society as a follow-up to previous studies in 1977, 1981, and 1984. The objective was to determine the characteristics and strategic directions of the educational and research components of this field. Approximately 3000 individuals were contacted in more than 1000 academic institutions. The completed survey instruments were analyzed, and the responses were verified. The study results show three trends: (1) the growth of engineering management is continuing at an increasing rate; (2) engineering management is emerging as a multidisciplinary discipline to encompass the management of the entire technological system; and (3) this new discipline is developing a strong research identity to supplement its educational emphasis throughout the life cycle of technologies, products, and technical processes. >


Objective This study set out to investigate the relationship between mood and physical and psychological factors in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Method As part of a longitudinal study investigating decision-making in ALS, 69 ALS patients, recruited from the South East ALS register, were assessed at baseline on measures of mood (Beck Depression Inventory Fast Screen), purpose in life (Purpose in Life Scale) and illness perceptions (Brief Illness Perceptions Questionnaire). Demographic and illness characteristics were also recorded. Hierarchical multiple regression was used to determine the extent to which psychological variables (purpose in life; and illness perceptions—consisting of perceived consequences of illness, personal control, identity, concern and emotions) predicted mood, after accounting for the effects of demographic (age, years of education) and illness characteristics (symptom severity, measured by ALSFRS-R). Results 42.0% of patients exceeded the recommended clinical cut-off score on the BDI-Fast Screen, suggestive of depression, although most of these (34.8% of the total sample) fell in the mild range. Multiple regression showed that psychological variables (purpose in life and illness perceptions) explained an additional 42% (adjusted R2=0.406) of the variance in mood, over and above that explained by demographic and illness characteristics, which only explained a total of 7% of the variance. In the final model, purpose in life was the only statistically significant predictor of mood among ALS patients. Conclusion Purpose in life, based on the work of Frankl (1959), refers to the degree to which a person experiences a sense of meaning in life and includes, for example, having goals to strive for and relationships to maintain (Hedberg et al, 2011; White, 2004). Frankl (1958) suggested that a lack of purpose in life can weaken the will to confront life situations, producing an "existential vacuum" and resulting in depression and anxiety (Hedberg et al, 2011). Current results suggest that purpose in life may play a more significant role in influencing mood among ALS patients than the beliefs about their illness or the severity of their physical symptoms. Findings, therefore, emphasise the importance of understanding psychological factors leading to risk of mental health problems in this population, and ultimately their relation to prognosis and treatment choices. Funding This study is funded by the MNDA, UK.


The Smart Transformer (ST) is a possible solution to obtain intelligent nodes in the electrical grid, which can be used for the grid management and increase the capacity for the integration of renewable energy sources. A problem for the application of the ST in the distribution grid is the expected lower reliability in comparison with the traditional transformer. To address this problem, the knowledge of power system, power electronics and reliability is combined in this work. Following the "Physics of failure" approach, the most frequently failing components are identified, their load profile in the electrical distribution grid is analyzed and finally solutions are developed to improve the reliability.
The power semiconductors are found to be the most prone to fail components and most of their failure mechanisms are found to be affected by thermal cycling. For this reason, thermal stress analysis is performed for the three-stage ST. As an opportunity to increase the reliability, active thermal control is introduced, which is a software based solution for the reduction of the thermal stress during operation. The existing approaches from literature are reviewed and categorized into control of the power converter losses and the control of the device loading.
For increasing the reliability by control of the power converter losses, one algorithm is introduced and validated for hard switching power converters and one algorithm is introduced for soft switching power semiconductors.
Controlling the thermal stress of modular building blocks in a modular power converter, referring to power routing, is proposed. The capability of the algorithm is investigated analytically for series connected and parallel connected modular building blocks. For the validation, the influence of the power routing on the loading of the single cell is demonstrated experimentally for series connected, parallel connected and medium frequency transformer coupled cells in modular power converters.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the effectiveness and precision of tractionless retinal tissue dissection by the advanced version of the pulsed electron avalanche knife for fine cutting (PEAK-fc; Carl Zeiss Meditec, Jena, Germany).

METHODS
Porcine retina (in vivo) and human retina (in vitro) were incised with the PEAK-fc using various pulse parameters. The globes were then processed for light microscopy. Evaluation of all specimens focused on depth of the retinal cuts and on the degree of collateral damage.

RESULTS
Retinal cuts performed both in vivo on porcine eyes and on human donor eyes showed very sharp edges with only little collateral damage. With probes of 600 mum in length, the optimal pulse parameters for precise and reproducible cutting of the retina were an amplitude of 350 to 380 V, a repetition rate of 300 Hz, and 30 "minipulses" per pulse of 100-microsecond duration. With increasing voltage, cuts also affected the retinal pigment epithelium and the choroid, followed by intravitreal bleeding during in vivo application.

CONCLUSION
We demonstrated that PEAK-fc is capable of precisely cutting retinal tissue in vivo and in vitro using optimal pulse parameters. Further in vivo studies will be necessary to determine the efficacy of this new tractionless cutting device in vitreoretinal surgery.


Background:Antiretroviral therapy (ART) reduces transmission of HIV-1. However, genital HIV-1 can be detected in patients on ART. We analyzed factors associated with genital HIV-1 shedding among high-risk women on ART in Burkina Faso. Methods:Plasma viral load (PVL) and enriched cervicovaginal lavage HIV-1 RNA were measured every 3–6 months for up to 8 years. Random-effects logistic and linear regression models were used to analyze associations of frequency and quantity of genital HIV-1 RNA with behavioral and biological factors, adjusting for within-woman correlation. The lower limit of detection of HIV-1 RNA in plasma and eCVL samples was 300 copies per milliliter. Results:One hundred and eighty-eight participants initiated ART from 2004 to 2011. PVL was detectable in 16% (171/1050) of visits, in 52% (90/174) of women. Cervicovaginal HIV-1 RNA was detectable in 16% (128/798) of visits with undetectable plasma HIV-1 RNA in 45% (77/170) of women. After adjusting for PVL, detectable cervicovaginal HIV-1 RNA was independently associated with abnormal vaginal discharge and use of nevirapine or zidovudine vs. efavirenz and stavudine, respectively; longer time on ART and hormonal contraception were not associated with increased shedding. The presence of bacterial vaginosis, herpes simplex virus-2 DNA, and the use of nevirapine vs efavirenz were independently associated with an increased quantity of cervicovaginal HIV-1 RNA. Conclusions:Certain ART regimens, abnormal vaginal discharge, bacterial vaginosis, and genital herpes simplex virus-2 are associated with HIV-1 cervicovaginal shedding or quantity in women on ART after adjusting for PVL. This may reduce the effectiveness of ART as prevention in high-risk populations.


This paper research on how hazardous chemicals transportation provider optimal transportation solution supposed transportation risk (i.e. releasing of chlorine) may happen in the process of transportation. If the government attaches much importance to environment protection and pushes severe punishment on environment pollution, the hazardous chemicals transportation provider should consider two goals together: minimizing the individual transportation cost and minimizing the social transportation cost. Then this paper develops a goal programming model which contains two goals for the problem. Which goal is important will affect the objective function of this model. Through discussion on importance compare of two goals, this paper believes that government policy is very important to inspirit hazardous chemicals transportation providers complying with laws and protecting environment.


The author studies some aspects of the Kazantzakis' play Comedy Tragedy in one act, written in 1909. "This work upsets us with the spectacle of the total sacrifice, the hopeless wait, the agony of man, the abyss of death, and nihilism." The study consist of three sections andan introduction.The first reading's title is COMEDY, A COMPARATIVE DRAFT, in which the author draws a parallel between this play and Sartre's HillS CLOS and Beckett's WAITING POR GODOT.There is a second reading
EXISTENCIALISM ANTE LITTERAM. Here, we find an analysis of the play's characteristics, which place it into the existentialist current. Final!y, the third reading ABYSS ANO FAITH examines certain aspects present in the play, which could be called theological.


Abstract The ozonesonde stations at Uccle (Belgium) and De Bilt (Netherlands), separated by only 175 km, offer a unique opportunity to test the influence of different ozonesonde types and different correction strategies, as well as to detect the presence of inhomogeneities in the ozonesonde time series resulting from changes in sounding equipment (solution, radiosonde, ozonesonde, interface, sounding software, etc.). In particular, we highlight a 2.5 year period (beginning of 2007 to mid-2009) of anomalous high tropospheric ozone values measured by ozonesondes at Uccle and compare these with the observations from De Bilt. Because the ozone deviations are only observed in the free troposphere where ozone concentrations are relatively low, and not in the boundary layer or the stratosphere, this issue is directly related to the sensitivity of ozonesondes. Therefore, the effect of every instrumental change, even though small, during this 2.5 year anomalous period is analyzed considering a change in the radiosounding equipment, different ozonesonde batches, operational differences at the stations, differences on ascent and descent during the anomalous period; an environmental cause is also examined. Unfortunately, one single, specific cause for the observed high tropospheric ozone values at Uccle could not be identified. There are two explanations consistent with the observations and not ruled out by the analysis here: 1) the majority of the ozonesondes used at Uccle between March 2007 and August 2009 needed longer conditioning of their sensors and, therefore, behaved more accurately at low ozone concentrations during their descent or when used a second time, and 2) an environmental origin arising from a local difference in the air mass between Uccle and De Bilt and between the ascent and descent.


Vibration-based methods can be used effectively to characterize the physical properties of biological materials, with an increasing interest focused on the mechanics of individual, living cells. Real-time measurements of cell properties, such as mass and Young's modulus, can yield important insights into many aspects of cell growth and metabolism as well as the interaction of cells with external stimuli (e.g., drugs). Vibrational test structures designed for the study of such cell properties often use fixed configurations and operational modes, with associated limitations in determining multiple characteristics of the cell, simultaneously. Recent development of mechanics-guided techniques for deterministic assembly of three-dimensional (3D) microstructures provides a route to vibrational frameworks that offer tunable configurations, vibration modes, and resonant frequencies. Here we propose a method that exploits such tunable vibrational structures to simultaneously determine the mass and modulus of a single adherent cell, or of other biological materials or small-scale living systems (e.g., organoids), through theoretical modeling and finite element analysis. The idea involves a 3D architecture that supports two different vibrational structures and can be converted from one to the other through application of strain to an elastomeric substrate. Specifically, tailored designs for serpentine ribbons in these systems enable a decoupling of the dependence of the resonant frequencies of the two structures to the cell mass and modulus, with an associated ability to measure these two properties accurately and independently. These same concepts can be scaled to apply to various types of cells, as well as to organoids (3D clusters of cells) and other biological materials with small geometries, across a range of values of mass and modulus. This method could serve as the foundation for microelectromechanical systems capable of monitoring mass and modulus in real time for use in research in biomechanics and dynamic biological processes.


A standard for carbon dioxide emissions from power plants in the United States, known as the Clean Power Plan, has been finalized by the Environmental Protection Agency. Decreases in carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel combustion have the potential cobenefit of reductions in emissions of oxides of nitrogen, which contribute to the formation of ground‐level ozone. Emissions of ozone precursors may result in elevated ozone concentrations nearby or downwind. Chronic exposure of sensitive vegetation to tropospheric ozone reduces its potential productivity. To evaluate the cobenefits of the Clean Power Plan to sensitive vegetation, we estimate ozone concentrations in the continental U.S. in 2020 with a chemical transport model in accordance with reference and alternative Clean Power Plan policy scenarios, which represent a range of possible approaches to reducing carbon dioxide emissions from power plants. The reductions in biomass, or the potential productivity losses, due to the exposure of 4 crops and 11 tree species to ozone are as large as 1.9% and 32%, respectively, in the reference scenario. The least stringent policy scenario reduces these losses by less than 3% for any given species; however, the scenarios consistent with policies resulting in more rigorous nitrogen oxide reductions produce potential productivity losses lower than the reference scenario by as much as 16% and 13% for individual crops or tree species, respectively. This analysis affords the opportunity to consider public welfare cobenefits of a regulation that is designed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from power plants.


OBJECTIVE
To characterize the risk of interactions that may lead to the transmission of Mycobacterium bovis between cattle and white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) on farms in northern Minnesota.

SAMPLE
53 cattle farms in northwestern Minnesota adjacent to an area where bovine tuberculosis-infected cattle and deer were detected.

PROCEDURES
A semiquantitative deer-cattle interaction assessment tool was used for the 53 cattle herds. Farm risk scores were analyzed on the basis of deer damage to stored feed.

RESULTS
27 (51%) farms reported deer damage to stored cattle feeds within the year previous to the farm visit. A strong association was found between increases in the percentage of land that could serve as deer cover and deer damage to stored feeds on a farm. The total risk score was significantly associated with the probability of a farm having deer damage. By use of a logistic regression model, the total risk score and proportion of nonagricultural land around a farm could be used to predict the likelihood of deer damage to stored feeds.

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE
Management practices on many farms in northwestern Minnesota allowed potential deer-cattle interactions. The on-farm risk assessment tool served as a valuable tool for prioritizing the biosecurity risks for farms. Continued development of biosecurity is needed to prevent potential transmission of bovine tuberculosis between deer and cattle, especially on farms that have a higher risk of deer damage.


Recently, olfactory information on odorants has been associated with their corresponding molecular features. Such information has been obtained by predicting the sensory test evaluation scores from the molecular structure parameters or the sensing data. On the other hand, we develop a method of the prediction of molecular features corresponding to the odor impression. We utilize a machine-learning-based odor predictive model introduced in our previous research, and we propose a mathematical model for exploring the sensing data space. By using mass spectrum as sensing data in the predictive model, we can represent predicted mass spectrum as those of an odor mixture, and the mixing ratio can be obtained. We show that the mass spectrum of apple flavor with enhanced 'fruit' and 'sweet' impressions can be obtained using 59 and 60 molecules respectively by using our analysis method.


Parental self-efficacy (PSE) and the presence of psychological distress in parents with problematic substance use may help explain the relationship between substance abuse and parenting. This study, using a sample of 81 parents in treatment for substance abuse, investigates whether (1) the level of PSE correlates with the severity of substance use, the severity of psychological distress, the quality of child-rearing practices, and the parent-child relationship, and whether (2) the severity of psychological distress helps explain the relationship between PSE and child-rearing practices, as well as the relationship between PSE and the parent-child relationship. While the results did not yield any significant correlations between PSE and severity of use, results did demonstrate that PSE was significantly and positively correlated with positive parenting behaviors and warm/affectionate attitudes, but significantly and negatively correlated with feelings of depression, inconsistent discipline, and hostile/aggressive and neglectful/indifferent parenting attitudes. Psychological distress (anxiety and depression) was significantly and positively correlated with the severity of substance use (alcohol and drugs) and the presence of inconsistent discipline, but significantly and negatively correlated with insufficient supervision. Anxiety symptoms were also significantly and positively correlated with hostile/aggressive parental attitudes and neglectful/ indifferent attitudes and negatively correlated with warm/affectionate attitudes. PSE alone explains positive parenting behaviors, as well as hostile/aggressive parenting attitudes of the parent toward the child. By adding anxious feelings, the variables jointly explain the lack of supervision and the three parental attitudes variables (warm/affectionate, neglectful/indifferent, and hostile/aggressive). Finally, parent gender combined with PSE explained some of the variance in inconsistent discipline. Results suggest that other factors may explain the quality of parenting among parents with problematic alcohol and drug use. Further research in this area is needed to explore these factors.


Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrinological pathology among women of reproductive age. It is characterized by anovulation, oligo- or amenorrhea, hyperandrogenism, obesity, and insulin resistance. PCOS patients present with elevated levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in serum and follicular fluid. In this study, we examined the ovarian expression of angiopoietins (ANGPT) and their receptor tyrosine kinase receptor (TIE2), involved in the stabilization of blood vessels, in a rat model of dehydroepiandrosterone-induced PCOS. We also analyzed the effect of ovarian VEGF inhibition on ANGPT/TIE2, follicular development, and vascular stability. VEGF levels were increased in the PCOS ovaries, whereas the levels of its receptor fetal liver kinase-1 were decreased. In addition, the periendothelial cell area and the ANGPT1 to ANGPT2 ratio in the ovary were increased in the PCOS group. Percentage of primary follicles was increased and the percentage of preantral follicles and corpora lutea was decreased in the PCOS group. VEGF inhibition decreased the percentage of primary follicles close to control values. Interestingly, despite the presence of cysts in the ovaries from VEGF inhibitor-treated PCOS rats, its percentage was lower than the PCOS group without treatment. In summary, this study describes an alteration not only in the VEGF/fetal liver kinase-1 system but also in the ANGPT/TIE2 system in a dehydroepiandrosterone-induced PCOS rat model. This leads to an increase in periendothelial cell recruitment. We also demonstrated that ovarian VEGF inhibition can partially restore the accumulation of small follicles in PCOS rats and reduces cyst formation, improving ovulation and follicular development. Therefore, the inhibition of VEGF could be considered, in addition to other currently applied treatments, as a new strategy to be studied in PCOS patients to restore ovarian function.


Water is an essential element for human life but is being wasted and made unsafe due to anthropogenic activities and pollution. In Bangladesh, both surface water and groundwater are being polluted due to the rapid growth of urbanisation and industrialisation, and most importantly, arsenic contamination and industrial waste are affecting the potability of this natural resource. Bangladesh is a highly polluted country that faces a scarcity of clean water, despite having an abundance of water sources. This article presents a range of examples of existing environmental pollution in Bangladesh before focusing on water pollution and its causes and consequences. In addition, this article discusses how inefficient water management and poor law enforcement have failed to ensure environmental justice for the citizens of Bangladesh. Finally, this article concludes with observations about some ways forward to ensure water justice, enable access to clean water for all and achieve sustainable development in Bangladesh.


The objective of study was the restitution of state financial loss after corruption criminal case through civil law instrument. Any measures against corruption crime started with 1999 No.31 Act jo 2001 No. 20 Act on corruption eradication as the replacement for 1971 No.3 Act. State financial restitution might be from two instruments, criminal law and civil law. 1971 No.3 Act didn't count about it, but the substitutes clearly, through Tipikor, determined the civil law instrument as explained in Article 32, 33, and 34 of 1999 No. 30 Act and Article 38C in 2001 No.20 Act. Method used in this research considered a normative juridical research. It was processing and analyzing related law or regulations, and literatures relevant with corruption criminal conduct.
Results of research indicated that Article 32 (1) of 1999 No.31 Act jo 2001 No. 20 Act contained an explanation of actions against the law, mistakes, and causal relationship between law trespasses, in the expense of the state. Article 1365 KUHPdt added term "disprovable" meaning that if any actions against the law couldn't be proved, the claim might be from civil. Any persons shouldn't accept civil claim when the evidence for corruption criminal conduct had been collapsed despite the actual state financial loss. Regarding to the explanation the analysis Article 32 (1) of 1999 No.31 Act jo 2001 No. 20 Act, instead of the mistake or causal relationship between actions against the law in the expense of state, anybody couldn't be claimed in civil instrument because of lack of evidences. Though the evidences seemed lack, another measure related to the free decision. This kind of decision remained under Article 32 (2) of Corruption Criminal Conduct Act but it should not use them in term of pure free decision for this term violated KUHAP. When free decision meant disprovable criminal substances and the impossibility to enter civil law. The definition of "free decision" explained in Article 32 (2) of Corruption Criminal Conduct Act concerned with the freedom from any claims meaning that the defendant had been approved conducting the action claimed by prosecutor, but not criminal action.
In addition, when during corruption proceeding or investigation, the defendant passed away, the claim would be given to the beneficiary based on the prevailed regulation. Article 33, 34, and 38 C confirmed that when the defendant passed away, the claim would be rearranged against the beneficiary of the defendant. Corruption Criminal Conduct Act only determined the condition of passing away possibly submitted to civil case (Article 33, 34) but not prevailed for the defendant with sickness or mentally disorder. As a result, this regulation failed to afford other condition of the defendant. Therefore, it meant that the Act only explained about the passed away defendant but disregarded the defendant with sickness.
Above explanations clarified that the problem developed when the beneficiary of the defendant felt necessary to conduct a reverse claim against the passed away defendant despite the defendant's losing ability to act. In this sense, eliminated personal quality of action might stop the proceeding. Problems with beneficiary referred to a complex one because the beneficiary must take the responsibility of the wealth of the corruptor. Several classes in community still maintained different heir laws, such as Western heir law, Islamic heir law, and custom her law. For example, Chinese and people with Western law, provided interval for 3 to 4 months before rejecting the heritage such that the beneficiary might not be directly responsible for the debt made by the corruptor.


Previous research has shown that a urinary pheromone of female mice acts via the vomeronasal organ of the accessory olfactory system to elicit rapid release of luteinizing hormone (LH) in conspecific males. Several experiments were conducted to examine the importance of sexual experience for gonadotropin responses in male mice to female urine, male urine, saline, or mixtures of these stimuli. Both sexually naive and sexually experienced male mice had significantly higher plasma LH levels after presentations of female urine than after presentations of male urine. However, sexual experience appeared to increase the reliability of the short-latency gonadotropin response to female urine relative to a sexually neutral component of urine such as sodium chloride, and male urine appeared to suppress spontaneous LH secretion episodes in both naive and sexually experienced males. Subsequent experiments with sexually experienced subjects demonstrated that male mouse urine is a powerful suppressant of LH release in other males. Specifically, female mouse urine mixed with male urine failed to elicit LH responses in male subjects, whereas female urine mixed with saline was highly effective. Urine obtained from castrated male donors was as potent as urine from intact males in suppressing the gonad otropin response to female urine. The suppressive activity in male mouse urine thus does not appear to be critically dependent on gonadal hormones. The existence of a potent stimulatory pheromone in female urine and a potent suppressive pheromone in male urine makes male mice an excellent model system for studying the neural regulation of LH secretion.


Hias N., Leus L., Davey M.W., Vanderzande S., Van Huylenbroeck J., Keulemans J. (2017): Effect of polyploidization on morphology in two apple (Malus × domestica) genotypes. Hort. Sci. (Prague), 44: 55–63. Because polyploidy often results in enhancement of desirable properties, artificial genome doubling is commonly used in agriand horticultural crop breeding programs. In this study genome doubling was induced in two apple genotypes. The effect on vegetative morphological and physiological traits of the plants was then comprehensively determined by comparing the obtained tetraploid apple plants with their diploid counterparts. Out of 17 different physioand morphological characteristics, 15 were significantly affected in one or both genotypes. The response of these 15 characteristics also appeared to have been caused by two effects; 10 of the 15 characteristics exhibited a common response to ploidy change over both genotypes while five traits showed a genotype-specific response to polyploidization. Tetraploid leaves also exhibited a darker leaf colour, which could be correlated to a higher pigment concentration. Furthermore, the results also show a decreased elongation rate and leaf size in tetraploids, which is suggested to be due to the observed lower cell density in the polyploid apple plants.


To further examine the endogenous rhythm of disc shedding and phagocytosis observed in several species, adult Xenopus were entrained to a 12 hr light/12 hr dark cycle and then placed in constant darkness. At various times during a 3-day period of constant darkness, eyes were explanted and placed into culture medium, then processed for light and electron microscopy. A clear rhythmicity of disc shedding was observed, with pronounced peaks at the times light onset occurred in the original entrainment cycle. Modification of the HCO3- ion concentration in the medium was found to raise the amplitude of the peak of endogenous disc shedding. Explants maintained in culture medium containing deuterium oxide (a compound known to perturb circadian oscillators) were found to shed with a longer interval between peaks. The addition of the protein synthesis inhibitor, anisomycin, to this preparation suppressed the shedding rhythm. The action of anisomycin was investigated by autoradiographic examination of the pattern of 3H-leucine uptake and protein synthesis by the explant. The findings suggest the presence of a circadian oscillator for rhythmic disc shedding within the amphibian eye.


Objectives: With continued attention to pediatric sepsis at both the clinical and policy levels, it is important to understand the quality of hospitals in terms of their pediatric sepsis mortality. We sought to develop a method to evaluate hospital pediatric sepsis performance using 30-day risk-adjusted mortality and to assess hospital variation in risk-adjusted sepsis mortality in a large state-wide sample. Design: Retrospective cohort study using administrative claims data. Settings: Acute care hospitals in the state of Pennsylvania from 2011 to 2013. Patients: Patients between the ages of 0–19 years admitted to a hospital with sepsis defined using validated International Classification of Diseases, Ninth revision, Clinical Modification, diagnosis and procedure codes. Interventions: None. Measurements and Main Results: During the study period, there were 9,013 pediatric sepsis encounters in 153 hospitals. After excluding repeat visits and hospitals with annual patient volumes too small to reliably assess hospital performance, there were 6,468 unique encounters in 24 hospitals. The overall unadjusted mortality rate was 6.5% (range across all hospitals: 1.5–11.9%). The median number of pediatric sepsis cases per hospital was 67 (range across all hospitals: 30–1,858). A hierarchical logistic regression model for 30-day risk-adjusted mortality controlling for patient age, gender, emergency department admission, infection source, presence of organ dysfunction at admission, and presence of chronic complex conditions showed good discrimination (C-statistic = 0.80) and calibration (slope and intercept of calibration plot: 0.95 and –0.01, respectively). The hospital-specific risk-adjusted mortality rates calculated from this model varied minimally, ranging from 6.0% to 7.4%. Conclusions: Although a risk-adjustment model for 30-day pediatric sepsis mortality had good performance characteristics, the use of risk-adjusted mortality rates as a hospital quality measure in pediatric sepsis is not useful due to the low volume of cases at most hospitals. Novel metrics to evaluate the quality of pediatric sepsis care are needed.


Teardrop-shaped erythrocytes (TD) are frequently observed in the peripheral blood of patients with agnogenic myeloid metaplasia (AMM). These deformed cells may result from the myelofibrosis or the extramedullary hematopoiesis in the spleen. To determine the influence of the spleen on TD formation, we reviewed the presplenectomy (pre-S) and postsplenectomy (post-S) peripheral blood smears from 13 patients with AMM. The splenectomy was performed for a variety of reasons, including symptomatic hypersplenism or splenomegaly. The average number of TDs per 1,000 RBCs in the pre-S smears was 42 (range, 15 to 112 TDs), compared with 11 TDs in the post-S smears (range, 6 to 20 TDs)(P = less than .001). Only one of the 13 patients failed to exhibit this decrease in TDs post-S. There was no definite correlation between the number of TDs and the weight of the spleen removed at surgery, the interval since surgery, or age and sex of the patient. Based on this fourfold decrease in the number of TDs post-S, we conclude that the spleen in AMM play an important role in TD formation.


Assessing the hazard posed by sediments contaminated with hydrophobic organic compounds is difficult, because measuring the freely dissolved porewater concentrations of such low‐solubility chemicals can be challenging, and estimating their sediment–water partition coefficients remains quite uncertain. We suggest that more accurate site assessments can be achieved by employing sampling devices in which polymers, with known polymer–water partition coefficients, are used to absorb the contaminants from the sediment. To demonstrate the current accuracy and limitations of this approach, we compared use of three polymers, polydimethylsiloxane, polyoxymethylene, and polyethylene, exposed to a single sediment in two modes, one in which they were exhaustively mixed (tumbled) with the sediment and the other in which they were simply inserted into a static bed (passive). Comparing porewater concentrations of specific polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners with results obtained using air bridges, we found the results for tumbled polymers agreed within 20%, and the passive sampling agreed within a factor of 2. In contrast, porewater estimates based on sediment concentrations normalized to fOCKOC, the weight fraction of organic carbon times the organic–carbon normalized partition coefficient, averaged a factor of 7 too high. We also found good correlations of each polymer's uptake of the PCBs with bioaccumulation by the polychaete, Neanthes arenaceodentata. Future improvements of the passive sampling mode will require devices that equilibrate faster and/or have some means such as performance reference compounds to estimate mass transfer limitations for individual deployments. Environ. Toxicol. Chem. 2011; 30:1288–1296. © 2011 SETAC


PURPOSE
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid and transdermal therapeutic system (TTS), designed to release the drug into the skin at a constant rate, ranging from 25 to 100 microgram/hr, for up to 3 days. For the control of chronic cancer pain, Durogesic(R) patches (Janssen Co., USA) are now widely used. Recently, the Hana Company in Korea developed a new fentanyl patch, Fentas(R) using a different method. To compare the efficacy, and safety, of the fentanyl patch manufactured in Korea (Hana Pharm. Co. Ltd), with the Durogesic(R) patch, in controlling cancer pain, we performed randomized controlled, open labelled, phase III studies. MATERIALS AND METGODS: From January 2000 to April 2001, 85 patients were enrolled, 69 of whom (42 in D arm and 43 in F arm) completed the study, and were therefore assessable for per protocol (PP) analyses.

RESULTS
There were no significant differences between the two groups in baseline characteristics, with the exception of age. The primary end point was to show the therapeutic equivalence of the two patches. In these clinical trials, the confidence interval of difference, between the test drug (Fentas(R)) and the control (Durogesic(R)), was 0.027~ +0.124 by intention to treat (ITT) analysis. Even if the upper confidence interval exceeds + 0.1, the test drug is not superior to the control drug, because the confidence interval includes 0. However, by PP analysis, the confidence interval lies exactly within +/- 0.1. Therefore, we could conclude the two patches are therapeutically equivalent. The second endpoint was the difference of visual analog scale (VAS) between the baseline and the average of three measurements after treatment. The difference in VAS was 50.44+/-10.28 for the F arm, and 44.69+/-11.00 for the D arm. By PP analysis the test drug was superior to the control (p=0.028). The rescue morphine amount was 81.21+/-124.76 for F arm and 66.19+/-115.9 for D arm, and there was no significant difference between the two groups (p=0.6063). The most common adverse effects of both fentanyl patches were nausea or vomiting (55.3%), somnolence (50.0%), constipation (39.5%), gastrointestinal discomfort (57.9%) and headaches (25.0%). In general there was no significant difference in side effects or laboratory data between the two groups.

CONCLUSION
These findings suggest that Fentas(R) patches, administered every 3 days, are effective, safe, and well tolerated for the treatment of most patients with cancer pain and is as effective or better than Durogesic(R).


The ninth e d i t i o n of the Annual B ib l iography of compu te r -o r ien ted books continues the reputa t ion of previous ed i t i ons fo r being a valuable reference to academicians in the Computer and data processing f i e l d s and to computer users. This reference is useful fo r loca t ing current books to serve as t e x t books in teaching courses in the computer area and fo r reviewing current books that meet p a r t i c u l a r reading i n te res ts . Besides the usual subject l i s t ings, categor ies which ind ica te reader audiences a lso are given, i . e . , "For Students," "For Managers," "For Laymen. ~' Each c i t a t i o n i d e n t i f i e s the author; t i t l e ; pub l i sher ; date of pub l i ca t i on ; t o t a l pages; type of pub l i ca t i on as textbook, reference, or handbook; and the s t y l e . The b ib l i og raphy is one of the nine monthly issues of Computing Newslet ter fo r Schools of Business and may be purchased separate ly by nonsubscribers to the Newslet ter . The Annual B ib l iography is a necessary resource fo r anyone teaching in the computer f i e l d and would be a useful reference to readers of computerre la ted ma te r i a l s . J. T. GORGONE, Ft. Wayne, Ind.


Objective: Huang Fu Mi's Zhen Jiu Jia Yi Jing (ZJJYJ) is regarded as the earliest text (282 ce) on differential diagnosis and clinical acumoxa therapy in Chinese Medicine. Are contemporary manual acupuncture practices consistent with those reported in the ZJJYJ? The aim of this research was to investigate if modern manual acupuncture uses reported in research are consistent with classical practices reported in the ZJJYJ. Materials and Methods: A database search of human research studies from 1995 to 2016 was performed for all 270 acupoints for all 8 leg/body channels. The clinical foci of these modern publications were compared with acupoint clinical indications documented in the Song Dynasty Chinese edition (1077) of the ZJJYJ and the sole English translation (translated and compiled by Yang and Chace in 1994) of The Systematic Classic of Acupuncture and Moxibustion. Results: Of 2149 articles in English, 63 met the search criteria. These articles predominately reported acupoints on the lower leg, back, chest, and head. Correlations between the acupoints used in modern research and those used in the ZJJYJ were minimal. Clinical indications from the ZJJYJ typically involved symptoms relating to pain, swelling, fever, seizures, hallucinatory states, dysentery, malaria, and tuberculosis, which are now treated pharmacologically. However, one-third of modern studies were functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) investigations of neurophysiologic effects of manual acupuncture on the human brain. Conclusions: While, superficially, the ZJJYJ might seem irrelevant in modern manual acupuncture practices, well-documented physical effects (e.g., pain relief) of manual acupuncture do provide measurable outcomes for use in fMRI research. Therefore, the classical text does provide a guide for future research on influential acupoints on the leg and body channels.


Vertical cylindrical steel tanks are sensitive to differential settlement beneath the tank wall. Most previous studies were based on idealized harmonic settlement, however, for thin shell structures of high nonlinear behavior, it is obviously inappropriate to obtain the results under real settlement by simple summation of harmonic solutions. Real settlement of steel tanks can be grouped into two types - global differential settlement and local differential settlement. This paper examines the nonlinear response and stability behavior of floating-roof steel tanks under both types of settlement. It is shown that, for tanks under global differential settlement, local buckling occurs at the eave ring, followed by a stable post-buckling behavior, and final failure is by overall buckling of the tank shell; while for tanks under local differential settlement, the structural response is related to the degree of localization. At highly localized settlement, local snap-through buckling occurs at the tank wall, but it does not lead to a serious consequence, and the post-buckling behavior can also be utilized in design.


Copper nanosized powders were prepared by pulsed wire discharge (PWD) in N2 gas at low pressure (130 Pa) with high-speed gas puff. The pressure around one of the electrodes was changed to investigate the effect of electrical discharge prevention by gas puff. The peak pressure was changed from 22 kPa to 10 kPa in the gas puff apparatus by changing the distance from an acrylic resin tube and a bottom plate. The energy deposition in the copper wire at 22, 15 and 10 kPa was about 40, 37 and 33 J, respectively. The energy deposition in the wire increased with the increase in pressure around the electrode.


In this article we examine the textbook narratives of the colonial past and the nation-building process in Mozambique, a Southern African country which gained its independence in 1975. One of the priorities after independence was to redesign the state apparatus and social system in order to decolonise people's minds, foster patriotism and strengthen national cohesion. We have conducted a discourse analysis of the verbal and iconic content of two Mozambican history textbooks, which are exclusively dedicated to national history: one published during the singleparty or "socialist" phase; and the other published in the multi-party or "neoliberal" phase and currently in use. For this purpose, we developed an analytic framework to unveil how the textbooks' written and visual repertoires, and the combination thereof, convey (or otherwise) a diverse and inclusive vision of the nation. Our findings reveal that although there have been changes in the types of language and images used, the general account of Mozambican history remains identical, emphasising the need for national unity under the leadership of the ruling political elite and recounting the History of Mozambique from the perspective of a single Liberation script, that completely overlooks the agency of women.


In this paper, an improved algorithm for automatic test pattern generation (ATG) for nuclear power plant digital electronic circuits-the combinational type of logic circuits is presented. For accelerating and improving the ATG process for combinational circuits the presented ATG algorithm has the new concept-the degree of freedom (DF). The DF, directly computed from the system descriptions such as types of gates and their interconnections, is the criterion to decide which among several alternate lines' logic values required along each path promises to be the most effective in order to accelerate and improve the ATG process. Based on the DF the proposed ATG algorithm offers earlier detection of the conflicts and considerable reduction of the number of backtrackings. When the ATG algorithm is implemented in the automatic fault diagnosis system (AFDS) which incorporates the advanced fault diagnosis method of artificial intelligence technique, it is shown that the AFDS using the ATG algorithm makes Universal Card (UV Card) testing much faster than the present testing practice or by using exhaustive testing sets. >


In a 16-year-old girl with left upper abdominal pain of two months' duration fine-needle biopsy (guided by computed tomography) revealed a solid-cystic acinar-cell tumour of the pancreas. The tail of the pancreas was resected and the spleen removed. On inspection, the tumour--about 9 cm in diameter--was encapsulated and consisted of soft, brownish, partly haemorrhagic tissue. Histologically and immunohistochemically the diagnosis of an acinar-cell tumour was confirmed. Analysis of steroid hormone receptors revealed a high progestogen content. Since the operation the patient has remained symptom-free without any sign of tumour recurrence.


In "Two Captains from Carolina," Bland Simpson twines together the lives of two accomplished nineteenth-century mariners from North Carolina--one African American, one Irish American. Though Moses Grandy (ca. 1791- ca. 1850) and John Newland Maffitt Jr. (1819-1886) never met, their stories bring to vivid life the saga of race and maritime culture in the antebellum and Civil War-era South. With his lyrical prose and inimitable voice, Bland Simpson offers readers a grand tale of the striving human spirit and the great divide that nearly sundered the nation. Grandy, born a slave, captained freight boats on the Dismal Swamp Canal and bought his freedom three times before he finally gained it. He became involved in Boston abolitionism and ultimately appeared before the General Anti-Slavery Convention in London in 1843. As a child, Maffitt was sent from his North Carolina home to a northern boarding school, and at thirteen he was appointed midshipman in the U.S. Navy, where he had a distinguished career. After North Carolina seceded from the Union, he enlisted in the Confederate navy and became a legendary blockade runner and raider. Both Grandy and Maffitt made names for themselves as they navigated very different routes through the turbulent waters of antebellum America.


The paper1 describes a dynamic power management (DPM) strategy independent from application and operating system layers, but easily controllable by these layers. Challenges in defining an efficient power management policy include a relevant prediction mechanism of idle period of hardware components and the ability to wake-up components in sleep state such that time penalties induced by the power up operation do not affect application performance. We propose a power management technique based on a history graph built dynamically from the global functional states of the hardware components in the architecture. The history graph reflects the system functional states induced by the application tasks mapped and scheduled on hardware units whatever the operating system considered. The history graph captures correlations between functional states of hardware units and the timing in state evolution. Based on the history graph, power gating or clock gating is set to hardware units depending on the length of their predicted idle period. Wake-up events for power gated hardware units are also scheduled to limit impact of power up penalties. The policy has been analyzed through real practical benchmarks within the Synopsys Platform Architect framework.


The improved advancing front method is proposed for quadrilateral grid automatic generation and used in multi-media and complex domain. Background grid does not need to be given first, multi-media complex domain is divided into several closed sub-domains, information of points and lines from these closed sub-domain boundary is automatically extracted from the AutoCAD model, the generation of internal node is controlled with mesh density parameters and topology relation of points and lines from the closed domain. Grid density is controlled by the global density parameter and the relative size of adjacent sub-domains. Mesh quality evaluation system and multiple refinement measures are used to improve grid quality. First, the whole domain is divided into triangle meshes, after optimizing these triangle meshes, quadrilateral elements are obtained by combining or dividing these triangle elements, good quadrilateral meshes are obtained by these optimization measures. Finally, a railway embankment example shows its feasibility and reliability.


Abstract: The objective of this paper is to identify the challenges that online teaching and learning involves, with particular reference to the online teaching of banking and finance. A case study method has been used to investigate the challenges in online teaching of banking and finance. The study shows that while the content of the unit could be delivered online very efficiently; many operational problems could mar this mode from becoming an effective teaching and learning mode. The author taught the banking and finance course online at the University of Southern Queensland during semester 1 of 2001. The author designed this unit, prepared the course material, delivered it online and assessed the unit online. At that point of time and even today no University in Australia delivers this unit. Another important feature of this paper is the quick survey the author did about the use of WebCT by undergraduate finance students at University of Canberra and the comparison of his experience of using the online technology at USQ and the one at UC. The challenges faced and the way these were overcome could be of interest to those interested in teaching banking and finance online.


In the heavy engineering industrial sector numerous technical standards, ISO (International Standards Organisation) in particular, exist which invariably contain a glossary of terms providing definition within the context of the standard. However, there is a high level of ambiguity surrounding common terminology and limited consistency across these standards. Our case study company Silcar Pty Limited (Silcar) has recognised the opportunity to strategically expand its business into the provision of high value services to assist clients with the management of large and complex technical assets in heavy industry and essential service utilities. The strategic development of a knowledge management capability enables Silcar to take-on larger scale, higher value added and more flexible asset performance management propositions across a diverse range of industry, client and geographical situations. This research paper explores the concepts that support this capability and discusses the approach taken to achieve the vision of consistency on language.


The peptidoglycan (PG) is a macromolecular component of the bacterial cell wall that maintains the shape and integrity of the cell. The PG of Caulobacter crescentus, unlike that of many other Gram-negative bacteria, has repeatedly been shown to contain significant amounts of glycine. This compositional peculiarity has been deemed an intrinsic characteristic of this species. By performing a comprehensive qualitative and quantitative analysis of the C. crescentus PG by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and mass spectrometry (MS), we show here that glycine incorporation into the C. crescentus PG depends on the presence of exogenous glycine in the growth medium. High levels of glycine were detected at the fifth position of the peptide side chains of PG isolated from C. crescentus cells grown in the complex laboratory medium PYE or in defined medium (M2G) supplemented with casamino acids or glycine alone. In contrast, glycine incorporation was undetectable when cells were grown in M2G medium lacking glycine. Remarkably, glycine incorporation into C. crescentus peptidoglycan occurred even in the presence of low millimolar to sub-millimolar concentrations of free glycine. High glycine content in the PG had no obvious effects on growth rates, mode of PG incorporation or cell morphology. Hence, the C. crescentus PG is able to retain its physiological functions in cell growth and morphogenesis despite significant alterations in its composition, in what we deem to be unprecedented plasticity.


The tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosisinducing ligand (TRAIL) has been shown to activate mitogenactivated protein kinases (MAPKs) depending on caspase and mammalian sterile 20-like kinase 1 activations. However, the upstream molecule of MAPKs has not yet been identified. The mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 1 (MEKK1) and the apoptosis signal-regulating kinase 1 (ASK1) are considered to be possible candidates for the action of MAPKKKs induced by TRAIL and the possibility of reactive oxygen species involvement has also been investigated. We found that MEKK1/MEKK4 as opposed to ASK1, are responsible for TRAIL-induced c-Jun NH2-terminal kinase (JNK) or p38 activation, and that their catalytic activity is repressed by the caspase-8 inhibitor, suggesting that the caspase-8 activation induced by TRAIL is indispensible for MEKK activation. The 14-3-3 θ was also shown to interact with and to dissociate from MEKK1 by TRAIL treatment, thus implicating the 14-3-3 protein as a negative regulator of MEKK1 activation. Taken together, we show herein that the upstream molecule of the TRAIL-induced MAPK activation is MEKK, as opposed to ASK1, via the mediation of its signal through JNK/p38 in a caspase-8-dependent manner.


Motivation Regulatory sequences are not solely defined by their nucleic acid sequence but also by their relative distances to genomic landmarks such as transcription start site, exon boundaries, or polyadenylation site. Deep learning has become the approach of choice for modeling regulatory sequences because of its strength to learn complex sequence features. However, modeling relative distances to genomic landmarks in deep neural networks has not been addressed. Results Here we developed spline transformation, a neural network module based on splines to flexibly and robustly model distances. Modeling distances to various genomic landmarks with spline transformations significantly increased state-of-the-art prediction accuracy of in vivo RNA-binding protein binding sites for 114 out of 123 proteins. We also developed a deep neural network for human splice branchpoint based on spline transformations that outperformed the current best, already distance-based, machine learning model. Compared to piecewise linear transformation, as obtained by composition of rectified linear units, spline transformation yields higher prediction accuracy as well as faster and more robust training. As spline transformation can be applied to further quantities beyond distances, such as methylation or conservation, we foresee it as a versatile component in the genomics deep learning toolbox. Availability Spline transformation is implemented as a Keras layer in the CONCISE python package: https://github.com/gagneurlab/concise. Analysis code is available at goo.gl/3yMY5w. Contact email@example.com; email@example.com


Tutoring, as a process of accompaniment of university students, has among its purposes identification of and reflection on the various difficulties that can interfere in the development of student competencies. To the same end, the present research explores the possibility of using WhatsApp as a tutoring resource in universities, with an emphasis on identifying and reflecting on the academic, personal, and family problems of students. This case study uses a quasi-experimental approach with a treatment group and a control group intentionally selected at the Escuela Profesional de Educación Secundaria de la Universidad Nacional del Altiplano de Puno, Peru, during the first semester of the 2020 academic year. Data were collected using semi-structured interview guides and individual tutoring cards. The results show that this technological resource improved the university tutoring service among the students in the experimental group. It proved more flexible and attractive to students, who were motivated to externalize and reflect on their personal, family, and academic difficulties and showed increased openness to receiving help in problem solving them. On the other hand, student participation was less active in the control group. These findings affirm that WhatsApp is a resource that can allow more spontaneous and friendly communication between tutors and students, creating a context conducive to achieving the objectives of university tutoring.


The work presented in this thesis provides an integrated view and related insights for solar and wind farm operators and renewable energy regulators regarding factors influencing electricity production using those resources. The findings help production planning and grid stability improvements through better energy forecasting to reduce uncertainty. With the high increase in energy demand expected in both the near and far future, generating energy from green sustainable resources has now become an imperative necessity. Renewable energy sources like wind and solar are among the most promising and environmentally-friendly energy generation options. However, wind and solar energy production are influenced by many variables which affect the reliability, stability, and economic benefits of wind and solar energy projects, therefore, forecasting the potential amount of energy from wind and solar resources is of great importance. Hence, the objective of the work reported here was to explore the possibility of using artificial intelligence methods to accurately predict the generated renewable power from solar and wind farms based on the available data. Specifically, this thesis reports on the following results: 1. At first, solar photovoltaic (PV) energy forecasting was studied. Operators of grid-connected PV farms do not always have full sets of data available to them, especially over an extended period of time as required by key forecasting techniques such as multiple regression (MR) or artificial neural network (ANN). Therefore, the work reported here considered these two main approaches of building prediction models and compared their performance when utilizing structural, time-series, and hybrid methods for data input. Three years of PV power generation data (of an actual farm), as well as historical weather data (of the same location) with several key variables, were collected and utilized to build and test six prediction models. Models were built and designed to forecast the PV power for a 24-hour ahead horizon with 15 minutes resolutions. Results of comparative performance analysis show that different models have different prediction accuracy depending on the input method used to build the model: ANN models perform better than the MR regardless of the input method used. The hybrid input method results in better prediction accuracy for both MR and ANN techniques while using the time-series method results in the least accurate forecasting models. Furthermore, sensitivity analysis shows that poor data quality does impact forecasting accuracy negatively, especially for the structural approach. 2. Then, wind energy forecasting was studied utilizing three machine learning techniques namely Artificial Neural Network (ANN), Support vector machine (SVM), and k-nearest neighbors (K-NN). The three mentioned techniques were used to design, train and test wind energy, forecasting models. Later, a hybrid model was proposed based on these three techniques. Real data obtained from a 2MW grid-connected wind turbine has been used to train and validate the different machine learning techniques. To compare the accuracy of the models over different performance measures with different scales, a comparative evaluation method was devised and used. Results show that the ANN model has great performance in forecasting long-term wind energy, but in contrast, it has very poor short-term performance. SVM model shows better short-term forecasting performance than ANN but presents weak long-term forecasting abilities. K-NN model shows very good short-term forecasting abilities and fair long-term performance. The suggested hybrid model was able to forecast both long and short-term wind energy with very good performance. To that degree, the suggested model can help grid and wind farm operators to forecast the potential amount of wind energy for both long and short term with a good degree of certainty. 3. Finally, the effect of the input data resolution on the forecasting accuracy was studied for both wind and solar. So, datasets were collected from a 546 KWp grid-connected PV farm and a 2 MW wind turbine for one full year. This data was used to train and test Artificial Neural Network models to forecast day-ahead PV and wind energy utilizing time-series input data with 15, 30, and 60 minutes resolutions. The models were able to forecast the PV energy accurately, while the same models trained for wind showed poor performance. Higher input data resolutions lead to slightly better forecasting performance for the PV farm. Utilizing data with higher resolution can improve the forecast by 1-5%. While for wind energy forecasting, the resolution has very minor effects, the 30-minute resolution shows a bit better forecasting performance.


Background—Oxidative stress plays a pivotal role in ischemia and ischemia/reperfusion injury. Because p66ShcA-null (p66ShcA−/−) mice exhibit both lower levels of intracellular reactive oxygen species and increased resistance to cell death induced by oxidative stress, we investigated whether tissue damage that follows acute ischemia or ischemia/reperfusion was altered in p66ShcA−/− mice. Methods and Results—Unilateral hindlimb ischemia was induced by femoral artery dissection, and ischemia/reperfusion was induced with an elastic tourniquet. Both procedures caused similar changes in blood perfusion in p66ShcA wild-type (p66ShcAwt) and p66ShcA−/− mice. However, significant differences in tissue damage were found: p66ShcAwt mice displayed marked capillary density decrease and muscle fiber necrosis. In contrast, in p66ShcA−/− mice, minimal capillary density decrease and myofiber death were present. When apoptosis after ischemia was assayed, significantly lower levels of apoptotic endothelial cells and myofibers were found in p66ShcA−/− mice. In agreement with these data, both satellite muscle cells and endothelial cells isolated from p66ShcA−/− mice were resistant to apoptosis induced by simulated ischemia in vitro. Lower apoptosis levels after ischemia in p66ShcA−/− cells correlated with decreased levels of oxidative stress both in vivo and in vitro. Conclusions—p66ShcA plays a crucial role in the cell death pathways activated by acute ischemia and ischemia/reperfusion, indicating p66ShcA as a potential therapeutic target for prevention and treatment of ischemic tissue damage.


Intradermal tests using histoplasmin and paracoccidioidin antigens were performed in 138 persons from Pereiro, Ceara, Brazil. The results were positive in 61.5% and 32.5% with histoplasmin and paracoccidioidin antigens respectively. These results suggest infection by H. capsulatum and P. brasiliensis in the people living in the studied area. New studies are necessary to detect histoplasmosis and paracoccidioidomycosis as clinical diseases in that region.


Kidney dysfunction increases cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. The mechanisms for the risk increase seem to involve a combination of traditional and non-traditional CVD risk factors.We studied renal dysfunction as CVD and mortality risk factor in middle-aged men free from diabetes and CVD. The risk for myocardial infarction (MI) and CVD mortality was increased by ~40% in the 16.5% of men with worse renal function, independent of other CVD risk factors.Renal transplant dysfunction as CVD and mortality risk factor was also studied. Renal transplant dysfunction was a risk factor for mortality and for combined CVD endpoint. The risk by renal transplant dysfunction was independent of traditional CVD risk factors as well as transplantation-specific risk factors. Only moderate increase in serum creatinine resulted in mortality and CVD risk comparable to diabetes, older age and higher low density lipoprotein levels.In haemodialysis patients, the effects of a dialysis session on non-traditional CVD risk factors were studied. A HD session reduced asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) and homocysteine levels, as well as augmentation index (AIx). The change in AIx was related to ADMA plasma level change.In patients with stage 3-5 chronic kidney disease (CKD), endothelium dependent vasodilation (EDV) was studied together with markers of oxidative stress and C-reactive protein (CRP). CRP was related to lipid peroxidation, while EDV was related to intracellular antioxidative capacity measured by reduced glutathione levels.These studies demonstrate that mild to moderate renal dysfunction is independently associated with increased CVD risk in apparently healthy people, as well as in renal transplant recipients. The mechanisms by which renal dysfunction increases CVD risk are yet to be elucidated. We suggest that arterial stiffness could be reduced in haemodialysis patients by increasing nitric oxide bioavailability. In stage 3-5 CKD patients, improving intracellular antioxidative capacity may result in endothelial function improvement.


The perception of emotion in infant faces is a key parental skill, thought to be impacted by caregiving experience. It is widely assumed that women, and in particular mothers in the postnatal period, are more attuned to infant facial expressions than men. However, empirical evidence for this is lacking, and it is not yet clear whether potential differences in emotion processing between adults during pregnancy and postnatally are specific to infant expressions or extend to faces of all ages. In this cross-sectional study using a subsample from a Finnish birth cohort (N = 610), we examine adult and infant facial expression perception in pre- and postnatal men and women. Women rated the happy infant faces more positively on the valence (pleasure) dimension than men, but men rated the faces higher on the arousal (excited) dimension. There were no significant differences between adults responding during pregnancy or postnatally, but first-time mothers rated the faces as higher in arousal overall than multiparous mothers. The ability to identify specific emotions (e.g., sadness) in adult faces correlated with judgments of emotion in similarly valenced infant faces. We conclude that adults differ in their sensitivity to positive or negative emotions, independent of whether they are expressed in infant or adult faces. We did not find that perinatal status (pre- or postnatal) was associated with differences in sensitivity to emotion in infant or adult faces. Men and women were differentially sensitive to the valence and arousal in infant faces, independent of the timing of their responses. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).


We report on the development of a Java-based application devised to support collaborative learning of Art concepts and ideas over the Internet. Starting from an examination of the pedagogy of both Art education and collaborative learning we propose principles which are useful for the design and construction of a "lightweight" software application which supports interactive Art learning in groups. This application makes "dynamics" of an art work explicit, and supports group interaction with simple messaging and "chat" facilities. This application may be used to facilitate learning and teaching of Art, but also as a research tool to investigate the learning of Art and also the development and dynamics of collaborating groups. Evaluation of a pilot study of the use of our system with a group of 20 school children is presented.


This 7th volume in the Artefacts series looks at a number of significant instruments that were created to serve various scientific purposes.
The contributors examine the roles these instruments played both as scientific devices developed to advance our knowledge of the world and as cultural artifacts manufactured and used in specific settings.
Klaus Staubermann has also written Chapter 2: Introduction; and Chapter 14: Select Listing of Museum Instrument Collections.


Weakly supervised object detection (WSOD) has been widely studied but the accuracy of state-of-art methods remains far lower than strongly supervised methods. One major reason for this huge gap is the incomplete box detection problem which arises because most previous WSOD models are structured on classification networks and therefore tend to recognize the most discriminative parts instead of complete bounding boxes. To solve this problem, we define a low-shot weakly supervised object detection task and propose a novel low-shot box correction network to address it. The proposed task enables to train object detectors on a large data set all of which have image-level annotations, but only a small portion or few shots have box annotations. Given the low-shot box annotations, we use a novel box correction network to transfer the incomplete boxes into complete ones. Extensive empirical evidence shows that our proposed method yields state-of-art detection accuracy under various settings on the PASCAL VOC benchmark.